![Valley of the Shadow of Death & Breakfast on the Beach [Diptych]](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0260/5524/5923/files/WooKukWon-Double-hero_2340x.jpg?v=1729072480 "Valley of the Shadow of Death & Breakfast on the Beach [Diptych]")
“My work is like a child who spends half a day having fun just by wiggling his toes.”
Neo-expressionist fables
Kukwon Woo journeys through a world full of paradoxes drawing inspiration from every encounter. He synthesises these experiences into neo-expressionist paintings full of wit and wonder. He often paints children on heroic adventures or battling everyday tasks, accompanied by animal sidekicks and fairytale friends. These images are juxtaposed with text that ranges from comedic to philosophical. The result is sometimes absurd, like a pony reading decolonial theorist Franz Fanon (I Hate Mornings, 2020). Although he’s fluent in irony, his goal is to recreate the pure expression of a child “truly im...
Bio
Kukwon Woo (he/him) was born in Korea in 1976. He lives and works in Seoul.
Process
To create texture, Woo scratches the surface of still-wet paint with a pencil or the tail end of a brush. The scratched grooves create the illusion of woven fabric.
Collectors
Woo is a favourite among celebrities, art institutions, and major companies – in Korea and internationally. His collectors include LVMH Foundation, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, and V from BTS.
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